Chamonix ENSA and pedagogy in the early 70s

Fifty years ago I was in Chamonix for my five-week ski instructor training session at ENSA, and today, I have a hard time remembering what theoretical courses we received. 

I remember we learned about snow and avalanches, maybe the history of ski technique but very little, if anything, about pedagogy, customer relations and basic client’s psychology. 

The on-snow classes were all about technique, demonstrations, drills, explaining or demonstrating turns and other critical movements, a timed slalom race, an introduction to speed skiing (downhill) and plenty of endurance skiing in an apparent attempt to weed out the lesser skiers. 

As far as classroom was concerned, everything was mostly centered around safety like study of snow and avalanches. 

There was nothing about understanding students’ psychology, their fears, apprehensions, their sense of gliding and also no effort was made to introduce any rudiments of empathy, ability to step into one’s ski boots and technique aimed at relaxing students. 

Nothing either about organizing classes, group or private, general pedagogy and addressing a host of issues that always came up in practice. 

I don’t know what ENSA’s curriculum is now for modern instructors, but I wouldn’t be surprised that brute technique still overrules everything else in training ski instructors